Lowered Expectations

Heres my very brief little bio and I would like to open it up for all honest, and HELPFUL critism or advice. If you just want to flame me go ahead but dont expect a dignified response : )

So, Ive been playing poker for about a year now. I started with the free chips on partypoker, and learned quickly how to semi-bluff, bluff, and trap. I took these skills into the home tournament circuit (i.e. all my friends houses), and was able to achieve after about 20 tournaments the ability to place "in the money" about 80 % of the time. Accused of being a little too tight a player, I often would play two tournaments in a night, and end up heads up against the same guy, only to finish second both times. Ive finished second allot. Usually playing tight, picking spots and ending up against a goliath in heads up play.

I finished reading my first book on poker, aimed more at the limit game than the NL game. It actually taught me allot, and I am very glad I decided to read it.

Now I am playing online for money, micro limit NL (5cent to 25cent blinds). I am down overall online, but I am still up life long with poker, and it's something that I definately enjoy.

I have figured out lately some of my mistakes, including not bringing enough money to the table, not being able to let go of a losing hand, not calling down bluffs enough, not semi bluffing enough, not playing position enough. And so forth.

I have an uncle who plays for a living and to watch him dominate a table is something else. Its very impressive.

I get frustrated that I am not able to do that, I guess my expectations are too high, considering Ive only been playing a year, and he has some 20 years more experience on me. I go on "tilt" I think fairly easily although I don't like to admit that I am, it's a very subtle thing when it happens, and it really amounts to anger, upset, and impatience creating a nasty recipe for chip-suicide, but Ive been in that position a number of times.

What I am looking for is any advice for somebody at my stage of the game. I am interested in both NL and Limit, but I am still a marginaly better NL player as I've played it far longer. Actually in truth, I think I'm a pretty lousy limit player. : )

Any great websites or references, other than this one, and any helpfull tips are apreciated. Anything at all.

Cheers !

Hey--Welcome to FTR. My advice is to use FTR's resources as much as possible. Particularly, you should post hand histories whenever you have a question about the right play, and critique other people's HHs. I think analyzing HHs has done more for my game than anything else. Once you get to where you reflexively think situations through instead of just going with your gut, you are ahead of most players out there. Maybe you're already there, but I know I wasn't.

My other tip is to learn how to fold when you know you're beat.

I was in your same exact boat about 2 months ago. Just keep on reading the hand histories and strategies sections, even for micro limits as yourself. You said yourself you have found your leaks, so try to fix them. Finding your leaks is the hard part, fixing them is easy..just don't do what you do. And at micro limits, do NOT bluff ANYONE! Even a semi-bluff loses its worth, because these bastards call you down with anything and everything. The best way to play is to nut camp and bet everyone so hard that they cry whenever you have something good. Simple as that. Just keep on posting hand histories which you think you messed up on and we'll help you out. Welcome to FTR!

Originally Posted by samsonite2100

...critique other people's HHs. I think analyzing HHs has done more for my game than anything else. Once you get to where you reflexively think situations through instead of just going with your gut, you are ahead of most players out there.

My other tip is to learn how to fold when you know you're beat.

Absolutely the 2 most important ways to improve, hands down.

I was in your same exact boat about 2 months ago. Just keep on reading the hand histories and strategies sections, even for micro limits as yourself. You said yourself you have found your leaks, so try to fix them. Finding your leaks is the hard part, fixing them is easy..just don't do what you do. And at micro limits, do NOT bluff ANYONE! Even a semi-bluff loses its worth, because these bastards call you down with anything and everything. The best way to play is to nut camp and bet everyone so hard that they cry whenever you have something good. Simple as that. Just keep on posting hand histories which you think you messed up on and we'll help you out. Welcome to FTR!

You say DONT BLUFF, but I have had some sucess bluffing, Im playing right now at .5cent .10cent NL, and I just semi bluffed a pot from early postion with two players in. I don't do allot of full out bluffing, but I do allot betting the pot when I have second pair and a good read.

It sounds like your saying to play tight, and play the nuts big when I get them because people dont know when to back out ?

What about playing hands like A(anything) suited in middle or late position, even early ? I try to limp in with allot of different hands, any two cards over 10 suited or non, Ax suited, suited connectors over 8, any pair. But Im very judicious on the flop what I want to do, if Im drawing, and how thin, and I make most of my decisions there. I found at the penny tables its easy to limp with anything but now at the .5 cent .10 cent it gets a little harder, allot more preflop raising, so I'm having to adjust and tighten up slightly. Thoughts ?

Actually I wonder if Im playing a little too loose and simply spending all my winnings on inferior hands ? Its a distinct possibility.

I bluff players who can be bluffed, I don't draw conclusions based on what pretty colors my chips are.

[quote="dreamover"]

What about playing hands like A(anything) suited in middle or late position, even early ? I try to limp in with allot of different hands, any two cards over 10 suited or non, Ax suited, suited connectors over 8, any pair. But Im very judicious on the flop what I want to do, if Im drawing, and how thin, and I make most of my decisions there. I found at the penny tables its easy to limp with anything but now at the .5 cent .10 cent it gets a little harder, allot more preflop raising, so I'm having to adjust and tighten up slightly. Thoughts ?

Actually I wonder if Im playing a little too loose and simply spending all my winnings on inferior hands ? Its a distinct possibility.

What are you hoping to accomplish with the limped hand? That's the most important aspect of playing less than quality holdings, knowing why you're playing them.

If you're playing A-weak suited and hit the A and get bet into by a rock, what do you do? What if you hit the gut shot flush draw? Can you throw that away if you get incorrect odds on the flop or are you gonna chase runner runner?

Depending on the table and players there may not be a 100% correct answer, but you should always know why you're playing a hand and let it go if it's not shaping up to be what you were hoping it would. Limping crap was a huge leak in my game until I started to identify why I was playing certain hands and folding when I missed what I aimed for or if I didn't get otherwise lucky (flop a set, 2-pair, etc...)

Originally Posted by dreamover

You say DONT BLUFF, but I have had some sucess bluffing, Im playing right now at .5cent .10cent NL, and I just semi bluffed a pot from early postion with two players in.

At low limits semi-bluffs are -EV unless you play against really weak tight players. Why bother semi-bluffing if you are playing with fish who have trouble folding (I don't know if you are or not but if you play low limits then you probably are). All you are accomplishing is building a pot where you have the worst (a drawing) hand.

I don't do allot of full out bluffing,

Good. Bluffing is -EV.

but I do allot betting the pot when I have second pair and a good read.

Against one opponent with a good read perhaps. I usually don't bother getting even this fancy because I find it ends up in me digging a grave for myself unnessecarily. Reads are over-rated when you can beat 6 tables at once without them.

It sounds like your saying to play tight, and play the nuts big when I get them because people dont know when to back out ?

Exactly. This is the key to beating low stakes NL consistently. Play loads of tables and nut camp.

What about playing hands like A(anything) suited in middle or late position, even early ?

Fold them everywhere. If you want me to explain why I can. Trust me, fold them.

I try to limp in with allot of different hands, any two cards over 10 suited or non,

I play a minimum of QJ. I fold AT, KT, QT everywhere. Keeps me out of trouble.

Ax suited, Fold
suited connectors over 8, Fold untill you get really good at poker and you get to tables where stealing pots and playing players becomes a winning strategy

any pair. Play for sets and stack people

I found at the penny tables its easy to limp with anything but now at the .5 cent .10 cent it gets a little harder, allot more preflop raising, so I'm having to adjust and tighten up slightly. Thoughts ?

Fold more hands in EP, stuff like QJ and KJ. Save your limp in blind for a time where you wont get raised off it.

Actually I wonder if Im playing a little too loose and simply spending all my winnings on inferior hands ?

Thats exactly what you're doing. Well done for finding the biggest leak you'll ever find.

NH